Apparatus for separating liquids



2 Sheets-Sheet aucuns! B. D. 4'cow/N Filed Aug. 17, 1928 APPARATUS FORSEPARATING LIQUIDS March 26,1929.

March 26, 1929. B. D. coMYN APPARATUS FOR SEPARATING LIQUIDS 2Sheets-Sheet 2 CTL Patented Mar. 26, 1929.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.`

BERNARD DALY COMYN, OF BRIDGEeOF-WEIR, ESCOTLAN D.

yAIEPARATUS FOI SEPARATING LIQIDS.

Application led August 17, 1928, Serial No. 300,199, and in GreatBritain August 10, 1927.

rlhis invention relates to apparatus for sel'ntrating the constituentsoi ai'nixture oit liquids et unequal specific gravities, say a mixtureet oil and water which may also contain air.

Apparatus according to the invention comprises a container having asubstantially central inlet or inlets tor liquid mixture and separateoutlets :tor the several constituents, and means within the containerwhereby to coniine the liquid to flow substantially horizontally free.trom eddies and oscillation along a plurality oi passages away from thecentre towards the periphery to be withdrawn through the separateoutlets.4

A practical construction maycomprise a unit or a battery oit units, saidunit or each unit comprising` a container, an inlet or inlets for liquidmixture disposed substan tially axially ot the container, a set ofoutlet connections for the heavier constituent extending from near the,bottom ot the container7 a set oit outlet connections 'for the lighterconstituent located above the level et the inlet within the container,and a plurality of spiral guides extending'V Jfrom the inlet towards thelateral wall of the container, said guides being continued from thebottom of the container to an end wall above the terminus of the inlet,means being provided fl'or regulating the relative speeds oi deliverythrough said sets of outlet connections.

In the accompanying drawings Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic vertical sectionol a separating apparatus accordingto the invention; Fig. 2 is ahorizontal section through the main segregation chamber showing theguides; and Fig. 3 is a horizontal section through the upper watercompartment; Fio. 41; is a detail sectional plan view to a larger scaleshowing clearly the spiral guides; Fig. 5 is a vertical section showingan alternative construction.

Referring iirstly to Figs. 1 to l, the apparatus shown comprises acylindrical container 1 disposed axially of which is an inlet pipe 2terminating at a point spaced from the container bottom 8.

4- denotes interior spiral guides that start at points equidistant fromthe axis of: the container and diverge spirally therefrom towards theperiphery o1 the container; in the illustration the guides are eachsubstantially iormed as Archimedean spirals.

The inlet pipe 2 projects upwardly through the container coveraili'ording an air vent; by means oil a lateral branch pipe 6 the inletpipe 2 is supplied with liquid mixture.

Defined by spaced transverse partitions 7 and S and the cover 5 are alower water com- 1rrartment 9 and an upper water co1npartment l0, therebeing located in the lower compartment 9 a water discharge pipe 11 andin the upper compartment 10 a water discharge pipe 12. 50th pipes 11,1i?J merge into a common discharge pipe 123 located exteriorly ol" thecontainer; each of the pipes 11, 1Q is iitted with a control valve 141.

The lower portion 1G of the container constitutes the main segregationchamber; arranged around the periphery thereof` are vertically disposedwater pipes extending from near the bottom of said chamber into thelower water compartment 9.

17 (F 1 and 1l) denotes a ported partition plate spaced from the underside of the partition 7 and bounding with said partition 7 anoil-receiving chamber .1S (Fig. 1) around the periphery of which arearranged pipes 19 extending upwardly through the lower water compartment9 into the upper water compartment 10.

Disposed around the periphery ot the plate 17 are upwardly projectingpipes 17 which terminate below the partition 7 and through which extendthe pipes 15, there being formed between said pipes 17 and 15 annularoil passages 172.

173 denotes ports formed in the plate 17 between the spiral guides il.

The water pipes 15 and 19 are provided at their upper ends with cowls 19presenting at 192 (Fig. 3) outlet openings lacing the inner peripheralsurface ot' the container.

Projecting into the upper part ol the oil chamber 1S is a radialopelrended slotted oil discharge pipe 2O fitted with an oil controlvalve 21 and having a branch 22 con.- trolled by a valve 25 and adaptedto be op* cned to the upper water compartment 10 by way of avalve-controlled port 23 and to the lower water compartment 9 by way ofa valve-controlled port 24.

2G denotes valve-controlled dirt ports in the bottom olf the container.

27 and 28 indicate air vents lor the lower and upper water compartments9, 1() respectively.

drain Stand pipes 29 (Figs. 1 and are fitted to the por-ted partition 17and project upwardly intogthe oil chamber 1S.

It will be understood that the container is tapped near the bottom bythe water pipes and near the top by the oil discharge pipe in the oilchamber 18.

The mixture ot oil and water may be forced into the separator underpressure by a pump or the like or may be subject to gravity only.

As .shown in Figql, there may be litted inthe spiralv passages in thesegregation chamber 16 and in the oil-receiving chamber 18 of thecontainerr vertically disposed retarders 18", which are preferablyconstituted byvshort plates interposed in the passages and steppeddownwardly away from the axis of the container, the inner retarderplates in the Ysegregation chamber 16 ybeing disposed substantiallylevel with the lower open end ofthe inlet pipe2.

The upper edges of the spiral guides 4 are formed with diametrallyopposed notches 20 which at vone side of the container accommodate theoil discharge pipe 20 and at the other side present a passage tor flowot oil toward said pipe.

In operation, the mixtureenters the apparatus'in a` state otturbulence,and 'liowing at a high velocity.- The guides 4 direct the liquidtowardsv the periphery ofthe container, said guides being so disposedvthat the liquid is caused totlow horizontally inv severalvstreamsalongsubstantially spiral paths of the same length away from the centre olfthe container, turbulence'beingv gradually reduced concurrently with agradual and uniform reduction of velocity so that the oil is treeto'rise vertically into the oil chamber 18 whenceit escapes by way ofthe discharge pipe 20.' A large percentage ofthe water passes to the.water pipes 15 and vthence to the lower water compartment 9 and so tothe water disehargepipel by way of the pipe 11. A small percentage ofthe water passes by way of the Water pipes 19 into the upper Watercompartment 10 whence it passes to the water discharge pipe 13 by way ofthe pipe 12.

The water control valves 14 may be adjusted so that the desired'quantity of water passes vthrough` each of them the oil discharge valve21 being adjusted accordingly to deliver approximately the quota of oilin the mixture passing through the apparatus.

Scum collecting on the top of the water in the compartments 9 and l()may be drawn off by way ot' the valve-controlled ports 23 and 24.

What I claim is:

1. l paratus for separating the constituents o a mixture of liquidscomprising a container having a substantially central inlet tor liquidmixture and separate outlets for the several eonstitutents and means`withinthe container whereby to confine the liquid to How substantiallyhorizontally free from eddies and oscillation along a plurality otpassages away from the centre towards the periphery to bewithdrawnthrough the separate outlets.

2. Apparatus for separating the constituents ot a mixture of liquids.comprising a container having a substantially central inlettor liquidmixture, outletconnections for the heavier constituent extendinnr fromnear the bottom of the container, and` outlet connections for thelighter constituent located above the level of the inlet, and alrendwall above `the terminus of the inlet a plurality of spiral guidesextending towards the lateral wall ofthe container,` said guides beingcontinued from the bottom of the container to said end wall. andl meansfor regulating the'relativc speeds of delivery through said outletconnections.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name toy this specification.

BERNARD DALY COMYN.

